That England team spent 39 weeks at world no. 1. This Ireland team spent 65 weeks at no. 1. If rankings are worth mentioning at all, it’s worth being accurate.
Sorry guys but you're both mad. As it stands coaches are sending players out there as hitman. So you think thats gonna improve by removing the penalty for the team on the day. Bonkers
nail on head (pardon the pun) if you take away the red and the penalty for that then coaches will have a licence to take key players out and the game will become a complete farce. All these pundits commenting on penalise the offending player YET how many comment on the team that could have suffered an injury and that player out for a prolonged period of time also where is the "balance" when a red card is issued if a team suffers an injury that means a complete reshuffle or complete change of tactics for the offending team to simply bring on a replacement and level the numbers up again... madness... absolute madness.
reduce red cards?! ok then what stops the final of every competition becoming the time you sacrifice your next 6 weeks of rugby for that trophy. There has to be a least the threat of immediate catastrophic punishment if you truly want to stop dangerous play. Delaying punishment turns dangerous play into a games theory calculation.
There's no way the England team of 2003 beats Ireland, SA, NZ, France (pre drop off of form) of 2024. That's not to disparage them, they were great, but the game moves on, the teams of 2024 grew up with the game being professional, they are fitter, faster, stronger. If those figures from the past grew up and were trained in the modern era then maybe Barnes would then be right.
Correct. They were an amazing team but the game has moved on so much. Watching back some of those games from the early 2000s lots of the players look half the size they are now and they were moving half as fast. Especially in the packs. This Ireland side or the 2019 England team would massacre the 03 side. By today's rules or the rules back then it wouldn't matter. It would be a bloodbath.
They both forget that Ireland beat England in Twickenham in 2004 & 2006 ......England were over the hill quickly in 2007 Ireland beat England 43-13 ...
Blackrocks Big Joe Mac , is the greatest Irish Rugby talent Since Brian o Driscoll, and he was the one who changed the All Black game in the World Cup , if he started that game we would have won that matchup, he is a dominant pick and go smasher of a Forward , next world superstar!! England Peak 2003 v This Current Ireland team would be a huge mismatch because England would get destroyed by there Kicking Game , this Ireland team has a physical quick breaking lines possession game , England relayed on the power game against opponents , they wouldn’t be able to score enough against those Irish teams, he is way off here!!!Remember this team can do 37 phases , England Peak would do under 10 max , it be a Massacre!!!
I've coached rugby for many years and have a drill designed to show tacklers that it is a lot easier to drop low, quickly, than they expect. It is definitely possible to lower the tackle in a very short period of time and space if properly coached and drilled.
Using this game as an argument against red cards is wrong, the player was shown two, two! yellow cards in the space of thirty minutes. No excuses, he let himself and his team mates down. You must have consequences for your actions in sports or we will have career ending injuries.
To stop high tackles, defensive coaches need to feel the pain. If you allow player back on after red card, then defensive coach just picks a different player next game with same instructions. Doesnt matter how long you ban individual player. Last year Antonio v Ire, this year Williamse x 2 v Ire.
Red cards are not ruining games. Players who commit horrendous fouls ruin games. And in some cases, lives. That’s why red cards exist. By your logic, Willemse should have been allowed to not only hit out two Irish players, but as many at he could in 80 minutes? Absolute insanity.
If Willemse was red carded for an accidental collision or a marginal late hit, this discussion would be fine. But he hit two players in the head with his shoulder. He got off lightly and went back for seconds. Rather than whinging about cards, whinge about idiot players. And fans complaining about the “spectacle” are usually fans of other teams who didn’t want the team with 15 to win.
He got Dorris before the first yellow in a ruck with shoulder to head and trailing arm that wasn’t even looked at. Movaka did much the same and got away with it also.
@@aidanmasterson50 Yes. He’s always seen himself as an “enforcer” but he lost it completely last week. People whinging about what a red card does to the game need to cop on and blame the perpetrator rather than the ref or the system.
It's a different game now than it was in 2003 !!! In reality if that england team played this irish team today england would only finish with maybe 10 players on the field!! Fitness is better now ruck speeds are faster than ever etc etc
The more I think about it that's very true and not a slight on their ability, but they would have 40 or 50 different things coming at them they'd have never seen before. Even stuff people forget about like the Joe Shmidt breakdown and shot gun clear outs that's been part of Irish sides for the last 15 years. O'Connell, in his book, mentioned how Munster could never get near Leinsters' ball around 2010 until Shmidt became Ireland coach.
this approach can easily lead to targeting cruical players on the opposite team as willing to take a ban on a player as some countries have a massive pool to draw from
Rugby rules have changed quite a bit over the years since England won the world cup so the question as to who would win this clash is moot because we don't know if we're playing under 2003 rules or 2024 rules. I still think Ireland's speed, clinical execution and overall game plan would be too much for England to cope with... but we'll never know.
Yeah, very true. Also, pod system the All Blacks brought in around 2010 changed the game. Ireland have taken that to a different level. How they use the space on a rugby pitch is a whole new way of playing that every now and again a team comes across. Like Australia in the 1980s.
Teams just need to have better discipline. Look up when the last time was that Ireland got a player carded for a dangerous tackle. It is an incredibly rare occurrence now BECAUSE the players have been coached not and know how not to. Some countries are just dirtier than others, its a fact!
I think maybe they mean all things being equal. If the England 2003 team was just dropped in to 2024 they would be pumped. Trying to catch up on 20 years of rugby IP in 80 minutes.
@DM-rp9ik But they didn't qualify it, that it was relative. If it was relative to their eras, I'd go with England of 03, because my memories of that era was that they were head and shoulders above everyone else in the NH for a few years, and especially as they did go on to win the WC. Someone did point out that this Ireland stayed at number 1 for longer than that England though, but anyway trying to stay impartial as an Irishman I'd still have England of 03 ahead of Ireland of 24 taking it relative to the eras. But, this Ireland along with at least the top 3 other teams would beat that England team well for reasons I and others already stated, I'd go so far as to say that even the current England team would probably beat them. The game is just at a whole other level now.
@harshbutfair8993 It can only really be measured on what they did in they're time tbh because both basically play different games. Like someone said, going through 30 plus phases at the tempo Ireland do just didn't exist back then. Defences where amateur still. I mean, think about Greenwood, who openly said he couldn't tackle on his bad side and imagine what this Irish team would pull out of their big NFL style playbook to expose that. Hands down the line was the most used way to attack in open play. Since 2003 pods have become a thing, and this Irish team seems to have taken that a step further again, like look at the handling of Irish forwards like Furlong Bernie Doris and Sheehan. That's not something NH forwards did in the 2000s. Them you look at their tactical kicking and kick cycles it's all top class. They are phenomenally balanced modern rugby team. On achievements, it's England 2003, but if there was a rugby game played between the two, Ireland would just throw to much at them that they would have never faced in their careers during the Amateur/pro era.
@harshbutfair8993 Yeah, I mean back 3 players didn't even need to defuse bombs in 2003, or it was only the start of it. Robinson got badly caught out in the final, but the coaching in the game was still poor enough that it wasn't exploited again. But they did the ultimate, which was win the World Cup. They turned up in the right time with the right game.
We have the black card rule in Gaelic games which allows for players to be replaced when sent off but it is open to abuse i.e. hatchet men starting, taking out a key player and a star replacement coming on in his place. Are you telling me the SAFA'S wouldn't have a field day with this rule????
Former Irish Lion Stuart Barnes doing a total U turn on Ireland from last week I see. As for the 'delayed' punishment for cards. Utterly insane. You have to be penalised for foul play on the day, otherwise every pivotal game, every final could be carnage. The team foulled against, possibly losing a player to a HIA or injury has to be given some benefit *on the day*. What use is it to them if they lose a final because a player deserving of a red card stays on?! The other team isn't going to be stripped of a title.
11:23 i dont agree at all. Rugby is faster, more technical, more fitter and stronger than it was 20 years ago. The wouldn't be able to live with the speed of the game. fast ruck ball the game would be too fast for them. They wouldn't be able to love with the lineouts, or the mauls, along with other elements of the game. The English pack 2003 was 884.4 kgs Irelands starting pack against France was 907kgs and Ireland's heaviest possible pack weight is 932kgs Not to mention the rules also.
Giving a red card and allowing the team to bring on a replacement player so it is 15 v 15 is utter nonsense ! What happens if a player is injured and can't finish the match due to a failed HIA then really the offending team isn't penalised as both teams have used the bench. World rugby needs to give suspensions that are a wake up call not 3 weeks and tackle school.
I dont think 14 men is as big a deal as a few years ago but then 13 is a complete disaster. Ireland give up vv few cards maybe thats what others should be copying
No one wants to see a red card. But the safety of the players is paramount. 12 deaths from head injuries on the rugby pitch in last 10 years. To put this into perspective, only 20 boxers have died in the ring in the same period where the main aim is to knock out your opponent with blows to the head. We cant afford to compromise on the risk of head injuries. The red cards are necessary. My wife refuses to let my son to play rugby because of the concussions, broken bones, dislocated joints and destroyed knees that 16 year olds on his team have suffered.
The alternative to Red cards offered is ridiculous. What's to stop a team sending out someone who's not first choice to cause injury and then bring a better player in.
Headshots particularly, must be carded out of the game, and it was unfortunate to hear the two lads equivocating. Aside from that, re cards, Gaelic Football has Black cards (as well as yellow/red) for persistent fouling, where the player has to be replaced for the rest of the game by another player.
Ok people I personally have no doubt these 2 and others are getting "rewarded" from some sponsorship for pushing this insanity, when in doubt follow the money. Disgraceful behaviour from both of these nit wits.
The Times' correspondent is completely wrong about red cards. It's not that difficult to avoid getting a red card, and the team deserves to be punished on the day!
guys you dont compare Ireland to and England from 20+ years ago. Just how you wouldn't compare Ali to Tyson. I mean obviously Ireland would win ;). There's more modern tactics and back then I feel that style is outdated.
Player safety is no 1. Red cards are necessary and for a team to still get back to 15 players after a send off would be disgraceful. You changed your tune from the France Ireland preview video which shows in depth and in great detail that the two of you don't have a bloody clue what you're talking about. 😂
Ludicrous red card analysis. Every other player on the pitch managed to get through the game without trying to decapitate an opponent. No red cards in Cardiff or Rome. Are these two balloons saying that the game must be changed to suit teams that don't teach their players how to tackle? To add insult to injury, after making a total bollix of their prediction, faint praise for Ireland laced with nonsense about the red card and then a bizarre comparison with an England team from 20 years ago which nobody else has thought to make because there is no reason to make it. Mad Ted.
i find some of your comments disgusting. " the product is everything" How dare you say that when you are talking about players welfare. That is the most important thing. Rugby is an inherently physical and violent game with head injuries particularly leading to long term affects. Willemse smashed two irish men in the head with his shoulders with extreme force. How many times should he be allowed to do so if you want to keep him on the field so the teams are even. You ideas would mean many many more violent strikes to the head. There has always been red cards and for players to be unable to tackle properly at this level is deplorable
65 weeks at number 1 Ireland England 38 weeks at number 1, but England were better. I seem to remember England kicked their way to a World Cup and gran slam. When i look at the rugby Ireland now play they play a game of rugby England can only dream of. IMHO..
What a clown, so its ok to send someone off for a head tackle and just replace him. But the player who gets tackled and has to go off and miss two three more games, his team are offered the same deal “just replace him” and carry on we don’t want to spoil the game for the punters. What a joke..
That England team spent 39 weeks at world no. 1. This Ireland team spent 65 weeks at no. 1.
If rankings are worth mentioning at all, it’s worth being accurate.
Sorry guys but you're both mad. As it stands coaches are sending players out there as hitman.
So you think thats gonna improve by removing the penalty for the team on the day. Bonkers
Well said 👏👏
nail on head (pardon the pun) if you take away the red and the penalty for that then coaches will have a licence to take key players out and the game will become a complete farce. All these pundits commenting on penalise the offending player YET how many comment on the team that could have suffered an injury and that player out for a prolonged period of time also where is the "balance" when a red card is issued if a team suffers an injury that means a complete reshuffle or complete change of tactics for the offending team to simply bring on a replacement and level the numbers up again... madness... absolute madness.
reduce red cards?! ok then what stops the final of every competition becoming the time you sacrifice your next 6 weeks of rugby for that trophy. There has to be a least the threat of immediate catastrophic punishment if you truly want to stop dangerous play. Delaying punishment turns dangerous play into a games theory calculation.
Good to see the former Irish Lions player Stuart Barnes back with his predictions.
Absolute joke. Player safety comes first. Learn how to tack properly
There's no way the England team of 2003 beats Ireland, SA, NZ, France (pre drop off of form) of 2024. That's not to disparage them, they were great, but the game moves on, the teams of 2024 grew up with the game being professional, they are fitter, faster, stronger. If those figures from the past grew up and were trained in the modern era then maybe Barnes would then be right.
Correct. They were an amazing team but the game has moved on so much. Watching back some of those games from the early 2000s lots of the players look half the size they are now and they were moving half as fast. Especially in the packs. This Ireland side or the 2019 England team would massacre the 03 side. By today's rules or the rules back then it wouldn't matter. It would be a bloodbath.
Martin Johnston was a great player, but he didn’t play rugby like joe McCarthy and certainly not in his first cap for England..
They both forget that Ireland beat England in Twickenham in 2004 & 2006 ......England were over the hill quickly in 2007 Ireland beat England 43-13 ...
The safety of the players is the most important thing 💯
Blackrocks Big Joe Mac , is the greatest Irish Rugby talent Since Brian o Driscoll, and he was the one who changed the All Black game in the World Cup , if he started that game we would have won that matchup, he is a dominant pick and go smasher of a Forward , next world superstar!!
England Peak 2003 v This Current Ireland team would be a huge mismatch because England would get destroyed by there Kicking Game , this Ireland team has a physical quick breaking lines possession game , England relayed on the power game against opponents , they wouldn’t be able to score enough against those Irish teams, he is way off here!!!Remember this team can do 37 phases , England Peak would do under 10 max , it be a Massacre!!!
Or you can coach players to tackle
I've coached rugby for many years and have a drill designed to show tacklers that it is a lot easier to drop low, quickly, than they expect. It is definitely possible to lower the tackle in a very short period of time and space if properly coached and drilled.
Stuart- i thought Ireland were going 'to struggle' in France?! 🤷🏻♂️
Using this game as an argument against red cards is wrong, the player was shown two, two! yellow cards in the space of thirty minutes. No excuses, he let himself and his team mates down. You must have consequences for your actions in sports or we will have career ending injuries.
To stop high tackles, defensive coaches need to feel the pain. If you allow player back on after red card, then defensive coach just picks a different player next game with same instructions. Doesnt matter how long you ban individual player.
Last year Antonio v Ire, this year Williamse x 2 v Ire.
Red cards are not ruining games. Players who commit horrendous fouls ruin games. And in some cases, lives. That’s why red cards exist.
By your logic, Willemse should have been allowed to not only hit out two Irish players, but as many at he could in 80 minutes?
Absolute insanity.
If Willemse was red carded for an accidental collision or a marginal late hit, this discussion would be fine. But he hit two players in the head with his shoulder. He got off lightly and went back for seconds. Rather than whinging about cards, whinge about idiot players. And fans complaining about the “spectacle” are usually fans of other teams who didn’t want the team with 15 to win.
He got Dorris before the first yellow in a ruck with shoulder to head and trailing arm that wasn’t even looked at. Movaka did much the same and got away with it also.
@@aidanmasterson50 Yes. He’s always seen himself as an “enforcer” but he lost it completely last week. People whinging about what a red card does to the game need to cop on and blame the perpetrator rather than the ref or the system.
Ireland beat SA away in SA with only 14 men a few years ago when CJ Stander was red carded.
Red carded in the first half as well.
62 minutes they played with 14 men and 10 minutes of they played with 13.
And more of a development squad than the full first team.
It's a different game now than it was in 2003 !!! In reality if that england team played this irish team today england would only finish with maybe 10 players on the field!! Fitness is better now ruck speeds are faster than ever etc etc
The more I think about it that's very true and not a slight on their ability, but they would have 40 or 50 different things coming at them they'd have never seen before.
Even stuff people forget about like the Joe Shmidt breakdown and shot gun clear outs that's been part of Irish sides for the last 15 years. O'Connell, in his book, mentioned how Munster could never get near Leinsters' ball around 2010 until Shmidt became Ireland coach.
this approach can easily lead to targeting cruical players on the opposite team as willing to take a ban on a player as some countries have a massive pool to draw from
If Ireland do back to back, it’s the first time any team does back to back grand slams in the 6 nations.
There are red cards in Soccer too and nobody complains....
Rugby rules have changed quite a bit over the years since England won the world cup so the question as to who would win this clash is moot because we don't know if we're playing under 2003 rules or 2024 rules. I still think Ireland's speed, clinical execution and overall game plan would be too much for England to cope with... but we'll never know.
Yeah, very true. Also, pod system the All Blacks brought in around 2010 changed the game. Ireland have taken that to a different level. How they use the space on a rugby pitch is a whole new way of playing that every now and again a team comes across. Like Australia in the 1980s.
I think Ireland play a brand of rugby the rugby gods wished every team could play. Proper rugby….
Teams just need to have better discipline. Look up when the last time was that Ireland got a player carded for a dangerous tackle. It is an incredibly rare occurrence now BECAUSE the players have been coached not and know how not to. Some countries are just dirtier than others, its a fact!
why are people blaming the refs its the players who are committing these offences. if you cant do the time dont do the crime
Rediculious regarding the product is everything, u.S sport is just an advertising extravagansa, the sport a distant 2nd
Always learn a lot from Stuart Barnes. One of the best rugby commentators/analysts.
This Ireland team would beat England 2003
I think maybe they mean all things being equal. If the England 2003 team was just dropped in to 2024 they would be pumped. Trying to catch up on 20 years of rugby IP in 80 minutes.
@DM-rp9ik But they didn't qualify it, that it was relative. If it was relative to their eras, I'd go with England of 03, because my memories of that era was that they were head and shoulders above everyone else in the NH for a few years, and especially as they did go on to win the WC. Someone did point out that this Ireland stayed at number 1 for longer than that England though, but anyway trying to stay impartial as an Irishman I'd still have England of 03 ahead of Ireland of 24 taking it relative to the eras.
But, this Ireland along with at least the top 3 other teams would beat that England team well for reasons I and others already stated, I'd go so far as to say that even the current England team would probably beat them. The game is just at a whole other level now.
@harshbutfair8993 It can only really be measured on what they did in they're time tbh because both basically play different games.
Like someone said, going through 30 plus phases at the tempo Ireland do just didn't exist back then. Defences where amateur still. I mean, think about Greenwood, who openly said he couldn't tackle on his bad side and imagine what this Irish team would pull out of their big NFL style playbook to expose that.
Hands down the line was the most used way to attack in open play. Since 2003 pods have become a thing, and this Irish team seems to have taken that a step further again, like look at the handling of Irish forwards like Furlong Bernie Doris and Sheehan. That's not something NH forwards did in the 2000s.
Them you look at their tactical kicking and kick cycles it's all top class. They are phenomenally balanced modern rugby team.
On achievements, it's England 2003, but if there was a rugby game played between the two, Ireland would just throw to much at them that they would have never faced in their careers during the Amateur/pro era.
@harshbutfair8993 Yeah, I mean back 3 players didn't even need to defuse bombs in 2003, or it was only the start of it. Robinson got badly caught out in the final, but the coaching in the game was still poor enough that it wasn't exploited again. But they did the ultimate, which was win the World Cup. They turned up in the right time with the right game.
@@harshbutfair8993well lets go back to the 70s and see where the outstanding welsh team would get on.
he coukd have chose to tackle properly and not got a red card (not got 2 yellows in fact)
The second yellow, was upgraded to a red.
@@jasonwall5012 It was a second yellow, which is an instant red card. It only made the decision worst for later games for Willemse....
oooh!! I doubt very very much the England team of '03 would beat this Irl team. of '23 '24.
We have the black card rule in Gaelic games which allows for players to be replaced when sent off but it is open to abuse i.e. hatchet men starting, taking out a key player and a star replacement coming on in his place. Are you telling me the SAFA'S wouldn't have a field day with this rule????
You want to get rid of the red card so you can better align with American sports? Mental aspiration
Former Irish Lion Stuart Barnes doing a total U turn on Ireland from last week I see. As for the 'delayed' punishment for cards. Utterly insane. You have to be penalised for foul play on the day, otherwise every pivotal game, every final could be carnage. The team foulled against, possibly losing a player to a HIA or injury has to be given some benefit *on the day*. What use is it to them if they lose a final because a player deserving of a red card stays on?! The other team isn't going to be stripped of a title.
11:23 i dont agree at all. Rugby is faster, more technical, more fitter and stronger than it was 20 years ago. The wouldn't be able to live with the speed of the game. fast ruck ball the game would be too fast for them. They wouldn't be able to love with the lineouts, or the mauls, along with other elements of the game.
The English pack 2003 was 884.4 kgs
Irelands starting pack against France was 907kgs and Ireland's heaviest possible pack weight is 932kgs
Not to mention the rules also.
I see old 5 or 6 nations games from only 10 years ago its like watching a different sport the players today are elite athletes
Exactly! The physicality and fitness of the current players to that of 10 years ago is night and day.
If you don't like red cards, don't get red cards. This was two yellows, the same player made the same offense twice in a row.
Giving a red card and allowing the team to bring on a replacement player so it is 15 v 15 is utter nonsense ! What happens if a player is injured and can't finish the match due to a failed HIA then really the offending team isn't penalised as both teams have used the bench. World rugby needs to give suspensions that are a wake up call not 3 weeks and tackle school.
I dont think 14 men is as big a deal as a few years ago but then 13 is a complete disaster. Ireland give up vv few cards maybe thats what others should be copying
Taking DuPont out of the French team is akin to Argentina losing Messi
No one wants to see a red card. But the safety of the players is paramount. 12 deaths from head injuries on the rugby pitch in last 10 years. To put this into perspective, only 20 boxers have died in the ring in the same period where the main aim is to knock out your opponent with blows to the head. We cant afford to compromise on the risk of head injuries. The red cards are necessary. My wife refuses to let my son to play rugby because of the concussions, broken bones, dislocated joints and destroyed knees that 16 year olds on his team have suffered.
well said
The alternative to Red cards offered is ridiculous. What's to stop a team sending out someone who's not first choice to cause injury and then bring a better player in.
Headshots particularly, must be carded out of the game, and it was unfortunate to hear the two lads equivocating. Aside from that, re cards, Gaelic Football has Black cards (as well as yellow/red) for persistent fouling, where the player has to be replaced for the rest of the game by another player.
Turn the mic up Stuart.
Ireland won a series in NZ. Only 3 teams have done this. I believe Ireland would win it.
Ok people I personally have no doubt these 2 and others are getting "rewarded" from some sponsorship for pushing this insanity, when in doubt follow the money.
Disgraceful behaviour from both of these nit wits.
I thought the team was called the British and Irish Lions!
For a shortcut call them the Lions!
As an irishman i hate this because it usually where we fail miserably
As usual, pundits are heaping pressure on one team!
So your bests player gets carted of from dangerous tackles and the fella that has done it stays in the field learn how to drop yourself into a tackle
The Times' correspondent is completely wrong about red cards. It's not that difficult to avoid getting a red card, and the team deserves to be punished on the day!
no more predictions pls
It wasn’t a straight red. It was 2 yellows
The 2nd Yellow (the hit on Doris) was upgraded to a Red during the bunker review.
Ireland scored when they had 14 men
guys you dont compare Ireland to and England from 20+ years ago. Just how you wouldn't compare Ali to Tyson. I mean obviously Ireland would win ;). There's more modern tactics and back then I feel that style is outdated.
Dont commit bad dangerous tackles. Ireland dont need to do it. Its dangerous and wrong. What if somebodys neck breaks because of a bad high tackle. A
British Lions scrum half?
Great??
Player safety is no 1. Red cards are necessary and for a team to still get back to 15 players after a send off would be disgraceful. You changed your tune from the France Ireland preview video which shows in depth and in great detail that the two of you don't have a bloody clue what you're talking about. 😂
Ludicrous red card analysis. Every other player on the pitch managed to get through the game without trying to decapitate an opponent. No red cards in Cardiff or Rome. Are these two balloons saying that the game must be changed to suit teams that don't teach their players how to tackle?
To add insult to injury, after making a total bollix of their prediction, faint praise for Ireland laced with nonsense about the red card and then a bizarre comparison with an England team from 20 years ago which nobody else has thought to make because there is no reason to make it. Mad Ted.
totally agree!
Your sound is so bad
Ireland being bigged up long before the end of a tournament... Hmmmm . where have we seen that before? 🤔
Last 6 Nations
Are you asking for a clue or just being coy?
i find some of your comments disgusting. " the product is everything" How dare you say that when you are talking about players welfare. That is the most important thing. Rugby is an inherently physical and violent game with head injuries particularly leading to long term affects.
Willemse smashed two irish men in the head with his shoulders with extreme force. How many times should he be allowed to do so if you want to keep him on the field so the teams are even.
You ideas would mean many many more violent strikes to the head. There has always been red cards and for players to be unable to tackle properly at this level is deplorable
I try to see it from that Pov if I can, but this is a case of absolutely not. He needs to learn how to tackle end of
Amazing Ireland don’t get red cards, playing within the rules can be done….
65 weeks at number 1 Ireland England 38 weeks at number 1, but England were better. I seem to remember England kicked their way to a World Cup and gran slam. When i look at the rugby Ireland now play they play a game of rugby England can only dream of. IMHO..
What a clown, so its ok to send someone off for a head tackle and just replace him. But the player who gets tackled and has to go off and miss two three more games, his team are offered the same deal “just replace him” and carry on we don’t want to spoil the game for the punters. What a joke..